Quick drive: Datsun GO+
We have a go in the tiny MPV in Rishikesh
Admittedly, Datsun hasn’t had the best of debuts in India. Their GO hatchback has been, er, interesting but hasn’t generated the demand the company would like. Recent reports from Global NCAP showing the hatch fails safety tests hasn’t helped (though there’s more to that story than meets the eye). The GO+ is a compact MUV that has no competitors. Technically, the Mahindra Quanto would qualify, but its in a whole other price bracket.
Yes. the GO+ is based on the hatchback, but is essentially a new model. The extended rear is well integrated, thought the engine and interior are mostly carried over from the hatch. It’s under 4 metres in length to boot (no pun intended).
Briefly. As soon as the novelty wears off, not so much. There’s nothing particularly striking about the GO+’s design, but that will probably help it along as it ages. I’m particularly partial to the rear three-quarter view. The haunches look nice and the rest of the rear is unfussy. It’s also squat-looking, something you don’t expect from an MUV.
The GO+ is going to be a hard sell. We drove the range-topping variant, which was quite bare. There was the funky mobile holder and AUX-only music system, and that was about it. The interior is ‘tri-tone’ but bland to the point of being unnoticeable. The seatbelts at the rear aren’t the retracting kind. The rear view mirror doesn’t cut glare so you have to angle yourself away from blinding tailgaters. It’s the sort of thing that a bright-eyed young family looking for such a car would sit in, get out of and go buy a Tata Nano instead. Even that comes with a Bluetooth audio system these days. Everything appears built to a cost, and if you pay attention, you’ll find that the Indian market doesn’t want to buy things that feel cheap. It’s a lesson Tata Motors learned too late with the Nano. A car is a milestone purchase and needs to feel at least a wee-bit special. I did not feel special performing a flushing action to release the weird dash-mounted handbrake.
That said, if you’re really open minded, there are interesting things about this car, not least of which is the third row of seats, small as they are.
Not quick, but not awful. After my initial drive, I estimated about 70 horsepower. The claimed figure is 67bhp from the three-cylinder petrol engine, borrowed from the GO hatch. For that modest amount of power, it feels surprisingly sprightly with no trouble pulling two passengers and luggage up the hills to our campsite in Rishikesh. Part of the reason for this is that the car weighs just north of 800kg, which is very light for a vehicle with three rows of seats. Datsun have also tweaked the engine mapping to compensate for the added weight (over the GO hatch) and the result is perfectly satisfactory. The 104Nm of torque generated by the 3-cylinder motor comes in low enough to let you keep the car in one gear longer.
One doesn’t expect an MUV to be fun to drive, but the GO+ ticked enough boxes to make it an agreeable experience. The 4.6m turning radius makes U-turns a breeze, which is something we do very often when shooting drives like this. Even on narrow single lanes, one can get away with a two point turn, where others will struggle with the back-and-forth dance. Datsun explains that several engineering changes were made based on feedback, and to match the new format of the car. The steering is another area where the GO+ differs from the GO. It’s an EPS, but has some weight and the car feels good to steer. Combined, the steering and tight turning radius make for quick getaways.
Ride quality is a definite bright spot on this compact MUV. Datsun have worked over the suspension as well, incorporating dampers that react faster than standard items. This, they claim, is technology they developed for the Infiniti brand of premium cars, that has filtered down. We traversed some pretty bad patches of road around Dehradun, including strips that were just rock trails. The GO+ handled all that we threw at it with aplomb. The suspension is never crashy and unlike the hatch, which was prone to body roll, the MUV has things well under control. It’s likely a combination of suspension tweaks and added weight, but whatever the reason, this little van is all-right around the bends. The transmission, however, won’t keep up if you decide to hustle. It’s positive and slots into gear nicely, but quick changes are hard to snatch and I did end up grinding them a couple of times.
Datsun has released no pricing information as yet, but we’d expect a Rs 50,000–60,000 premium over the top hatch variant, so figure around Rs 5.1 lakh on-road. That’s not a bad price at all for three rows of seats, and would make this the cheapest MUV you could buy. Even if you consider the third row notional (there’s no legroom for adults, ingress and egress is a hassle), both rows of passenger seats fold and tumble, freeing up lots of cargo space (347 litres just at the back). Even if most people are put off by the cheap interior, I can’t help but think that there could be a market for this sort of vehicle.
Cheap to buy, relatively cheap to run (Datsun claim over 20kmpl), nice to drive with more space than a hatch at this price point: it could make for a compelling proposition, if you can stay in the car long enough to appreciate the nuances and clever engineering.
There really is none at this price point. The Mahindra Quanto too is below 4m but that’s a diesel, and more expensive.
3 /5 for effort, and a unique proposition.
Originally published at thrillofdriving.com on December 19, 2014.
